Cotton-weevil destroyer.



PATENTED OUT. 25, 1904:.

L. A. STEPHENS.

COTTON WEEVIL DESTROYER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 20, 1904.

N0 MODEL.

UNTTEE STATES Patented October 25, 1904.

PATENT ()EETcE.

COTTON-WEEVIL DESTROYER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 773,433, dated October25, 1904.

Application filed June 20, I904. Serial No. 213.438. No model.

of Texas, have invented certain new and use-- ful Improvements inCotton-Weevil Destroyers; and I do hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

The weevil commences its ravages upon the cotton-plants by depositingits eggs in the cotton squares or bolls. The squares and young bollsdrop from the cotton and collect in the lowest part of the surfacebetween the rows of the plants, and from these bolls full-grown weevilsin great abundance will be produced in about seventeen days and attackand destroy the cotton.

To prevent the hatching of the weevil, my invention is directed to theproduction of means for destroying their eggs and the weevil bycrushing'them where they lie upon the ground. For this purpose I haveproduced sheet-iron crushers, preferably connected together in pairs anddrawn straddling the row of plants, each crusher of convex form, shapedlike a shovel and weighted by carrying the driver, whose seat is mounteddirectly upon the crusher, so that they will crush the surface of theground and cause the crusher to seat itself slightly in the surface.Each crusher is drawn between the rows and will crush and destroy theeggs and weevils to such an extent as to reduce the quantity of theweevils hatched to a comparatively small number. The crushers areattached to any suitable wheeled frame drawn by a pair of horses, andthe swingletrees will act very effectively to shake off the squareswhich may have the eggs from the plants in advance of the crushers, sothat the loss of the cotton will be comparatively little from the eggsnot crushed. Each crusher is connected to a separate drag-pole, whichare connected by a yoke which crosses above the row of the plants andcarries the drivers seat over the row, and upon this yoke connectioneach crusher is free to rock transversely in its concave bed.

and sixty pounds.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 shows in perspective apair of sheetiron shovel-shaped crushers, each secured to and dependingfrom the end of a pole, a drivers seat connecting the poles, and thelatter connected to a heeled frame. Fig. 2 is a top view of the same.Fig. 3 is a transverse section of the pair of crushers connected by thedrivers-seat support.

The crushers 1 are preferably of sheet-iron, shaped like a shovel,having a convex bottom and provided with a bottom facing of steel, 2,which may be replaced when worn, of a Width so that its edges run aboutthree inches of the row of plants and weighing about one hundred At itsfront edge 3 it is slightly turned to prevent catching in the ground.Mediately of its width a pole 4 is secured by angle-irons or legs 5 5 toits upper side and projects forward, and mounted upon each pole aboutmediately of the length of the crusher is a yoke 6, which crosses overthe row of plants and carries the drivers seat 7 above it. Theconnection 8 of the yoke with each pole is such as to give a rigidmovement to the pole as the crusher is being drawn, and for this purposeits convex form and weight causes it to sink in and give a correspondingshape to the surface to crush and kill the weevil and its eggs and toallow the crushers and their connected poles to rise and fall independently of each other to conform to the surface between each row of plants.The poles of the crushers may be attached to any of the well-knownwheeled cultivators.

While I'have shown and described a pair of shovel-crushers, obviously asingle crusher may be used and carry the driver and his seat. I As thepoles are longitudinally central with the shovels, they are formed eachwith a bend 9 to allow them to extend and connect with the frame betweenthe Wheels, and I prefer to make the poles of piping and to connect themto the crushers, so that the latter will be braced transversely andlongitudinally at both ends.

As the killing of the weevil-eggs is by crushing them, the crushers areworked between the rows at intervals, commencing about the time theweevils begin to lay their eggs and repeating the operation severaltimes about 1 every eight or ten days, it being understood that theravages of the Weevil commence about the middle of June or the first ofJuly.

It is important to note that the seat is rigidly supported mediately ofand between the poles and that each crusher is rigidly connected to eachpole and With the seat constitute a rigid entity free to rise and fall.

1 olainr 1. In a cotton-Weevil destroyer, a crusher of sheet-n1etal,convex in cross-section, a dragpole, rigid bracket-hangers connected tothe crusher, and on which pole the crusher is rigidly supported as it isbeing drawn forward.

2. In a cotton-Weevil destroyer, a pair of sheet-metal convex crushers,a drag-pole for each crusher connected thereto mediately of its Widthand supported rigidly on such connection, a yoke connected to each poleabout mediately of the length of each crusher, and a seat for the drivermounted on the yoke mediately between the crushcrs.

3. In a cotton-Weevil destroyer, a pair of convex crushers, a drag-polefor each crusher, a yoke connected to each pole and a drivers seatmounted upon the yoke mediately between the Crushers, the crushers, andthe seat being rigidly connected to the poles.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing Witnesses.

LEE ALBERT STEPHENS \Vitnesses:

GEORGE BALDWIN, D. TAYLOR.

